How to Be Safe in an Unsafe World: The Only Guide to Inner Peace and Outer Security

Returning from their collaboration on The Power of 5, Bloomfield, a psychiatrist, and Cooper, an erstwhile security specialist, begin this insightful look at the growing concern with personal safety by introducting the concept of ""inner safety""--a general sense of self-confidence and the ability to cope with conflict as it arises--that results from what they call ""safety intelligence."" This book is an attempt to teach safety intelligence though exercises and by examples of how to maintain safety on a daily basis and to respond appropriately to various dangers. Bloomfield and Cooper stress that ""many threatening situations can be avoided or de-escalated before they ever reach physical violence."" They lead readers through a series of lessons on ""calm-alertness,"" on the ability to create and maintain ""safer spaces to live and work"" and on ""emotional safety."" To deal with attacks that become unavoidable, they teach a three-step response: ""the split-second PAUSE,"" to assess the situation and decide how best to respond; ""focused emotional energy""; and ""two+ responses,"" using ""two or more de-escalating phrases."" These specific responses are then applied to a variety of possible situations in homes, workplaces or schools; in the car or on the street; and in personal relationships. From muggings to domestic abuse, this book offers an uncomfortable yet necessary and thorough education in personal safety that most people lack and, unfortunately, may need at some time in their lives. Author tour. (May)